MACHINE POLISHING ALUMINUM WITH ZEPHYR BUFFING PRODUCTS WILL INVOLVE THE FOLLOWING SUPPLIES AND STEPS:

1. ROUGE BARS  

THE BROWN ROUGE BAR IS FOR PRIMARY (HEAVY) CUTTING.
THE GREEN BAR IS FOR SECONDARY (MEDIUM) CUTTING OR SEMI-FINISH.
THE WHITE BAR IS FOR FINAL (FINE) FINISH , HIGH LUSTRE.
THE PLATINUM SERIES ROUGE BARS ARE FOR FINAL-FINISH, SHOW QUALITY WORK.

2. POLISHING WHEELS

THE POLISHING WHEELS ARE AVAILABLE IN TWO DIAMETERS, EIGHT INCH AND TEN INCH. THE EIGHT INCH WHEELS ARE MOST FREQUENTLY USED BY THOSE INDIVIDUALS DOING THEIR OWN WORK. THE TEN INCH WHEELS ARE OFTEN USED BY EXPERIENCED PROFESSIONALS. IN EITHER CASE, POLISHING ALUMINUM CAN INVOLVE AS MANY AS THREE STAGES, THE PRIMARY CUT, SECONDARY CUTTING, AND LASTLY THE FINAL FINISH.

FOR PRIMARY CUTTING, USE THE AIRWAY ORANGE, BLUE, OR EVEN YELLOW FAST CUT OR YELLOW MILL TREAT WHEELS. THE YELLOW WHEELS ARE LESS AGGRESSIVE THAN THE ORANGE AND BLUE WHEELS. BASE YOUR SELECTION ON THE EXTENT OF OXIDATION. ORANGE AND BLUE WOULD BE BETTER CHOICES THAN YELLOW IF HEAVY-CUTTING IS REQUIRED. MANY POLISHERS CHOOSE TO START WITH THE YELLOW MILL TREAT WHEEL OR THE YELLOW FAST CUT WHEEL FOR THE MAJORITY OF THEIR WORK. AT THIS PRIMARY STAGE THE BROWN ROUGE BAR (HEAVY-CUTTING) IS USED.

FOR SECONDARY CUTTING (STAGE TWO) YOU CAN ALSO START WITH A YELLOW WHEEL. KEEP IN MIND THAT YOU CAN BEGIN YOUR WORK AT THIS SECOND STAGE IF HEAVY OXIDATION IS NOT PRESENT, USING THE GREEN ROUGE BAR RATHER THAN THE BROWN BAR. ALSO NOTE THAT MANY POLISHERS SKIP THIS STEP, USING ONLY TWO STEPS TO THEIR POLISHING WORK. THESE POLISHERS WILL BEGIN WITH ONE OF THE YELLOW WHEEL SELECTIONS (FAST CUT OR MILL TREAT) AND A BROWN BAR. THEY THEN MOVE ON TO THE FINAL FINISH STAGE MENTIONED BELOW.  IF YOU ARE BEGINNING YOUR WORK AT THIS SECONDARY STAGE, OR IF YOU CHOOSE TO DO YOUR WORK IN ALL THREE STEPS, OTHER BUFFING WHEEL CHOICES FOR THE SECONDARY CUT WOULD BE PURPLE-LEA, OR HALL GREEN.  PURPLE LEA AND HALL GREEN ARE MEDIUM TO LIGHT CUTTING POLISHING WHEELS. THESE WHEELS ARE LESS AGGRESSIVE THAN THE YELLOW WHEEL SELECTIONS. NOTE AGAIN THAT AT THIS SECONDARY STAGE THE GREEN ROUGE BAR IS USED.

THE FINAL FINISH STAGE (STAGE THREE) OF POLISHING ALUMINUM IS TO BRING OUT THE "MIRROR SHINE." FOR THIS LAST STAGE, USE THE AIRWAY WHITE UNTREATED WHEEL, OR ANY OF THE COTTON MUSLIN BUFFS IN 30, 40, 50 OR 60 PLY. KEEP IN MIND THAT THIS STAGE OF MACHINE POLISHING CAN ALSO BE USED APART FROM THE PREVIOUS STEPS IN MAINTAINING YOUR ALUMINUM'S MIRROR SHINE. AT THIS STAGE OF POLISHING THE WHITE ROUGE BAR IS USED.

3. SAFETY FLANGE KIT

ALWAYS USE SAFETY FLANGES WITH ANY BUFFING WHEEL THAT HAS THE METAL CENTER PLATE. THE SAFETY FLANGE COVERS THE METAL CENTER PLATE TO PROVIDE PROTECTION IN THE EVENT A BUFFING WHEEL SHOULD COME APART. (ALSO USE A RESPIRATOR AND FACE SHIELD OR GOGGLES).

4. VARIABLE SPEED SANDER/GRINDER MACHINE (0 - 6000 RPMS)

A POPULAR POLISHING UNIT IS THE DEWALT 849 POLISHER. (SOLD ON THIS WEBSITE UNDER "BUFFING SUPPLIES." RECOMMENDED RPMS FOR POLISHING ALUMINUM IS BETWEEN 1500 AND 2500. POLISHING STAINLESS STEEL REQUIRES HIGHER RPMS. THE MAXIMUM RPMS FOR THE ZEPHYR AIRWAY BUFFING WHEELS IS 3400 RPMS.

5. ZEPHYR PRO 40 METAL POLISH ALONG WITH SOME MICROFIBER TOWELS.

POLISHERS WILL DO A FINAL WIPE DOWN OF THEIR ALUMINUM TO REMOVE ANY REMAINING ROUGE RESIDUE. THIS IS DONE WITH A METAL POLISH AND  MICROFIBER TOWELS. MAKE SURE YOUR MICROFIBER TOWELS ARE KEPT IN A BAG OR IN SUCH A WAY AS TO KEEP THEM FREE OF DIRT. MICROFIBER IS GREAT MATERIAL, BUT IT IS A MAGNET FOR DIRT AND MUST BE KEPT CLEAN SO AS TO AVOID COLLECTING ABRASIVE MATERIAL.  

MAKE SURE TO CLEAN AND DRY YOUR WHEELS PRIOR TO COMMENCING. IN PREPARATION, AN ACID WASH IS OFTEN RECOMMENDED. 

1. PRIMARY CUTTING (BROWN ROUGE)

AFTER YOUR INITIAL PREPARATION, CHOOSE THE BUFFING WHEEL MOST APPROPIATE TO THE CONDITION OF YOUR ALUMINUM. FOR HEAVY CUTTING, USE THE ORANGE OR BLUE BUFFING WHEEL. FOR LESS HEAVY CUTTING, CHOOSE THE YELLOW MILL TREAT; OR FOR SOMETHING IN BETWEEN, YOU MAY WANT TO USE THE #4 YELLOW FAST CUT BUFFING WHEEL. IF YOUR ALUMINUM IS IN REASONABLY GOOD CONDITION, YOU MAY WANT TO BEGIN AT THE NEXT (SECONDARY) STEP. IF USING A WHEEL THAT HAS BEEN USED BEFORE, MAKE SURE IT IS CLEAN AND FREE FROM ABRASIVE PARTICLES.

IT IS UNNECESSARY, AND IN FACT SHOULD BE AVOIDED WHEN APPLYING ROUGE TO THE BUFFING WHEEL, THAT PRESSURE IS APPLIED. SIMPLY "TOUCH" THE ROUGE BAR WITH THE OUTSIDE EDGE OF THE BUFFING WHEEL UNTIL THE ROUGE ADHERES TO THE WHEEL. THE ROUGE BAR SHOULD BE PLACED ON A CLEAN SURFACE TO AVOID COLLECTING DEBRIS. THE POLISHING WORK ITSELF IS DONE BY LETTING THE ROUGE COMPOUND DO THE CUTTING AND POLISHING. AVOID THE TENDENCY OF APPLYING EXCESSIVE PRESSURE TO THE BUFFING WHEEL. IT IS ALSO IMPORTANT TO AVOID EXCESSIVELY HIGH RPMS AS THE HEAT GENERATED ON THE WORK SURFACE WILL INTERFERE WITH THE ROUGE WORKING PROPERLY. THE RECOMMENDED RPMS FOR POLISHING ALUMINUM IS BETWEEN 1500 AND 3000. ONE OF MY CUSTOMERS, A LONG TIME PROFESSIONAL POLISHER, CONSISTENTLY POLISHES AROUND 2200 RPMS.

IN GENERAL TERMS, YOU WILL WANT TO START AT THE TOP OR BOTTOM OF THE ITEM BEING POLISHED (FUEL TANK FOR EXAMPLE) AND POLISH BY SECTIONS. USE A SMOOTH LEFT TO RIGHT POLISHING MOTION. MAKE SEVERAL PASSES USING AN OVERLAPPING MOTION, AS YOU WORK TOP TO BOTTOM OR BOTTOM TO TOP. (CLEAN YOUR BUFFING WHEELS PERIODICALLY DURING USE, AND AFTER USE. STORE THEM IN A PLASTIC BAG TO KEEP THEM FROM PICKING UP ABRASIVE MATERIAL.)

(NOTE: IF PITS AND DEEP SCRATCHES ARE PRESENT, SANDING WILL BE NECESSARY PRIOR TO THE BUFFING PROCESS. YOU CAN START WITH ABOUT 320 WET DRY GRIT AND WORK UP TO AROUND 1000 GRIT.)

2. SECONDARY CUTTING (GREEN ROUGE)

FOR THE SECONDARY CUTTING, USE THE PURPLE -LEA OR HALL GREEN BUFFING WHEEL. IF YOU ARE BEGINNING YOUR TASK AT THIS STAGE, YOU MAY WANT TO USE THE YELLOW MILL TREAT AND THEN PROCEED TO THE THIRD (FINAL SHINE) STEP.

USE THE SAME MOTION AND DIRECTION AS IN THE PRECEDING STEP. IF YOU NOTICE THAT THE ROUGE COMPOUND IS "CAKING' ON THE EDGE, USE A BUFFING WHEEL "RAKE" (A WIRE BRUSH IS SOMETIMES USED) TO CLEAN THE EXCESS COMPOUND FROM THE WHEEL. YOU DO NOT WANT TO HAVE A BUILD-UP OF ROUGE ON THE BUFFING WHEEL, OR THE ALUMINUM SURFACE. A COMMON MISTAKE IS TO USE TOO MUCH ROUGE. THIS MAKES IT DIFFICULT TO REMOVE FROM THE ALUMINUM. IF YOU SHOULD GET A BUILD-UP OF ROUGE ON THE ALUMINUM, BACK OFF THE ROUGE, AND GO OVER THE AREA WITHOUT ADDITIONAL ROUGE. 

3. FINAL FINISH (WHITE ROUGE)

FOR THE FINAL STEP IN THE MACHINE POLISHING PROCESS, CHOOSE THE WHITE UNTREATED BUFFING WHEEL; OR YOU MAY OPT TO USE ONE OF THE COTTON MUSLIN BUFFS WHICH COME IN 30, 40, 50 OR 60 PLY. THE 30 PLY HAS THE LEAST WIDTH AND THE 60 PLY IS THE WIDEST. USE THE SAME PROCEDURE AS IN THE PREVIOUS STEPS. IF YOU PREFER, YOU CAN SUBSTITUTE THE PLATINUM ROUGES, LIKE THE RED OR THE BLUE, IN PLACE OF THE STANDARD WHITE ROUGE.

4. FINAL WIPE DOWN

AFTER FINISHING THE ABOVE PROCESS, THIS LAST STEP WILL TAKE CARE OF ANY DUST AND CAKED RESIDUE IN THE PORES OF THE ALUMINUM. APPLY THE LIQUID PRO 40 METAL POLISH TO A MICROFIBER TOWEL. RUB UNTIL THE SURFACE BECOMES BLACK. LET THE POLISH DRY TO A HAZE, AND THEN RUB OFF WITH A CLEAN, DRY MICROFIBER TOWEL. GOOD WORK!

FOR MAINTENANCE OF ALUMINUM WHEELS, SEE "WHEEL POLISHING KITS".